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Ijaw Leader Tasks FG On Oil Communities’ Dev
A prominent Ijaw
leader and elder statesman, Chief Thompson Okorotie, has called on the Federal Government to look into those things that need to be done to change lives and bring real development in the South-South, especially the oil producing communities.
He said the long neglect of these oil host communities has remained one major reason for agitation in the Niger Delta.
Okorotie who was a lawmaker and chief whip in the Old Rivers State House of Assembly during Okilo’s administration and an officer of the Federal Republic (OFR) disclosed this to newsmen at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, on his arrival from Abuja, Thursday.
“If somethings go wrong and there is an outbreak of hostility, the south-south will lose and the environment will suffer. I believe that the federal government is willing to negotiate with avengers and other groups. Oil will not be exported if this disagreement is on, and that is not what the nation needs.
“Our message repeatedly is that the federal government looks into those things that need to be done to change the lives in the south-south, especially the oil producing communities”, he stated.
According to him, series of meetings have been held with him, and other Ijaw leaders like Edwin Clark with representatives of the federal government on how to resolve hostilities and disagreements in the region.
“The last meeting we had in Warri to bring all the groups together and the minister of state for petroleum, Ibe Kachukwu in attendance, MEND said they are not ready to work with the elders group especially with Edwin Clark as the arrow head,” he stated.
Okorotie, however, condemned the much military presence in the Niger Delta, stressing that such should be reduced, and that what they wanted was peace in the region.
He also called for the restructuring of the country to reflect real and true federal administration, adding that every state has their resources, but that laziness had made everybody to want to depend on oil and gas, and that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) was central to development in the Niger Delta.
Corlins Walter